CHAPTER SEVEN
Group Influences on Consumer Behavior
McGraw-Hill/Irwin
Copyright © 2004 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
Variety of Reference Groups
2
CHAPTER
7
Group Classification Criteria
3
Three Criteria:
• Membership
• Either/Or
• Degree of Commitment
• Attraction
• Dissociative Reference Groups
• Aspiration Reference Groups
• Type of Contact
• Primary Groups
• Secondary Groups
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7
4
Types of Groups
Uncategorized
Membership
Attraction
Positive
(associative)
Contact
Frequent
(primary associative)
Limited
(secondary associative)
Yes
(membership)
Negative
(dissociative)
Purchasers
(parents)
No
(nonmembership)
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7
Frequent
(primary dissociative)
Limited
(secondary dissociative)
Positive
(aspiration)
Desired
(aspiration)
Negative
(dissociative)
Avoided
(dissociative)
Consumption Subcultures
5
• They are a distinctive subgroup of
society that self-selects on the basis of a
shared commitment to a particular
product class, brand, or consumption
activity.
• Consumption Subculture Characteristics:
• Identifiable, hierarchical social structure
• Set of shared beliefs or values
• Unique jargon, rituals, and modes of
symbolic expression
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7
Consumer Insight 7-1
6
• Can meaningful communities exist on the Internet?
• What are the implications for society of the
emergence of Internet-based communities?
• What are the ethics of marketers monitoring
Internet interest groups for product and advertising
insights?
• What are the ethics of marketers participating in
Internet interest groups without revealing their
identity or purpose?
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7
Brand Communities
7
• A nongeographically bound community,
based on a structured set of social
relationships among owners of a brand
and the psychological relationship they
have with the brand itself, the product
use, and the firm.
• Nature of Brand Communities:
• Consciousness of Kind
• Rituals and Traditions
• Moral Responsibility
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7
The Nature of Reference Group Influence
8
• Informational: when an individual uses
behavior and opinions of reference
group members as potentially useful bits
of information
• Normative: when an individual fulfills
group expectations to gain a direct
reward or to avoid a sanction
• Identification: when individuals have
internalized the group’s values and
norms
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7
Situations and Influence
9
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7
Consumption Situations and Influence
10
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7
Determinants of Reference Group Influence
11
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7
Discussion Question (#30)
12
Using college students as the market segment,
describe the most relevant reference group(s)
and indicate the probable degree of influence
for each of the following decisions:
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
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7
Brand of mouthwash
Purchase of a Segway
Novel to Read
Becoming a vegetarian
Choice of movie
Discussion Question (#31)
13
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7
How important are reference groups to the purchase
of these products? Would their influence also
affect the brand or model? Would their influence
be informational, normative, or identification?
a. Sports drinks
b. DVD players
c. Dentists
d. An Internet connection
e. Segway HT
f. Volunteering with a nonprofit
organization
Discussion Question (#32)
14
What reference groups would be relevant to the
decision to purchase the product or activity
(based on students on your campus)?
a. Sports drinks
b. DVD players
c. Dentists
d. An Internet connection
e. Segway HT
f. Volunteering with a nonprofit
organization
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7
Group Communication
15
• Means of communication
• Word of Mouth
•
•
•
•
Free
Experience Based
Varies by Product Category
Negativity Bias
• Opinion Leadership
•
•
•
•
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7
Filter of Information
Enduring Product Knowledge
More Innovative
Have a More Defined Role in Multistep Flow
Mass Communication Information Flows
16
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7
Likelihood of Seeking an Opinion Leader
17
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7
Opinion Leadership and Opinion Seeking Scales
18
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7
19
Categories of Innovations
Degree of innovation
Examples
Norplant contraceptive
Becoming Vegetarian
Segway Human Transport
Discontinuous
Dynamically
continuous
Digital camera
Personal navigator
Internet shopping
DVD Players
Light snacks
Microbrew beer
Continuous
Small
Modest
Large
Behavioral change required
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7
© The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., 1998
Adoption Process & Extended Decision Making
20
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7
Diffusion Rate of an Innovation over Time
21
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7
Factors Affecting the Spread of Innovations
22
Low
risk
Easy trial
Changeprone target
market
High
observability
Individual
adoption
decision
Rapid
diffusion
Low
complexity
Large
relative
advantage
Extensive
marketing
effort
High
compatibility
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7
Strong felt
need
Recent Diffusion Curves
23
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7
Adoptions of an Innovation over Time
24
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7
Early Purchasers of Computers and VCRs
25
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7
Enhancing Marketing Strategy
26
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7